Three First Meetings
by Bill Birdbittle
Summary: Normal people meet someone once, and remember them after that. Normal people don't have to meet one another repeatedly. But then, Remus and Tonks have always been a bit...well, abnormal. A story about the times that Remus/Tonks first met.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I do not own or make money from Harry Potter. **

_Most people only have one first meeting. If two people have _two _first meetings, things can get a little complicated. If they have three...it can be taken for granted that their relationship will be _very_ complicated somewhere along the line…_

_1978_

"It's right here." James loped along, swinging his arms, Remus and Peter in his wake. They were coming up on a small cottage, where all knew Sirius would be waiting impatiently.

"I don't know what to do with children." Peter puffed as he tried to catch up to James' long-legged stride.

"Give 'em stuff." James responded cheerily. "Give her chocolate. Girls like that stuff. You've got some, eh, Moony?"

"Of course not." Remus replied. He was lying and they all knew it. "Fresh out, not a bite, sorry."

"What if she has to pee?" Peter at last blurted out his most pressing worry. "_What do we do then_?"

"Let her pee, we can't stop her." James gazed at him as if it were the most obvious thing in the world as he pushed open the white wicket gate and started for the door. "You_ do_ know how peeing works, right, Wormtail?"

"But we don't need all of us for this, do we?" Peter glanced at Remus for support.

Remus, knowing that he didn't want to babysit either, but also knowing they couldn't get out of it, only gave him a reassuring smile. "She'll probably sleep some, Wormtail, and Sirius will keep her entertained. He's her cousin, he knows what he's doing." Another lie, more blatant than the last. If anyone knew nothing about children and babies, it was Sirius. As a matter of fact…when he thought on it, he was pretty sure that none of them knew anything about babysitting, least of all him, the child-eating menace. He blew a strand of graying hair out of his face and waited as James knocked.

Sirius swung the door open before James had properly managed to touch it. "OHMIGODSHESA_DEMON_!" He bellowed at them, before dropping his voice to the normal level. "Hi, James."

Peter nearly toppled off the stoop with fear, and Remus had to reach out to steady him.

"Hi, Sirius." James punched his shoulder as they entered the front hall. Peter followed him, trembling, and Remus came in last, slightly apprehensive about spending three hours babysitting a young girl he could probably eat in one bite. Not that he _would_, but still, he had to keep it in his mind.

"Where's the little devil at?" James clapped his hands together, looking around the comfortable home.

"She's…" Sirius turned to gaze down the front hall.

It was dark at the end of the hall. All three boys joined Sirius in peering in the direction he indicated. After a long moment, a short figure came out of the area Remus presumed to be the kitchen. She had a half-eaten piece of toast in one hand. She stopped, stared at them, then came forward to stare some more.

They stared back, unabashedly, at the girl. Her hair was ashy gray, her skin was clammy white, and she was glowering at them from blood-red eyeballs. Remus (having some experience in the field of fangs) might have sworn that her teeth were filed to points as she angrily ripped off another bite of bread.

Peter let out a whimper.

Sirius's smile was uneasy and plastic. "Er, Marauders, this is my cousin, Nymphadora Tonks. Cousin, these are the Marauders: James, Peter, and Remus."

None of the three newcomers moved as each tried to formulate a response to this introduction. Remus, glancing at James, found that he was bereft of words, and Peter was hiding behind him. Deliberately stepping on the shorter boy's toe, he pushed past them and knelt down in front of the girl.

"Hi, I'm Remus." He held out his hand tentatively, not sure if Sirius had blabbed his condition to the child. "Nice to meet you, Nymphiadorea."

She raised her eyes from her toast to look at him, and he abruptly wondered who was the greater menace in the room. They'd changed from red to orange. She opened her mouth, spraying breadcrumbs over him.

"DON'T call me NYMPHADORA!" She screamed, her hair's color shifting to red in the blink of an eye. Yes, those were definitely fangs. Remus leapt back as Peter let out an outright squeal and reached for the doorknob. James pushed him out of the way.

"Been lovely Sirius, Lucifer." He pretended to doff his glasses. "But Moony and I've just remembered something very important we've got to do. G'day chaps…" He swung open the door and pushed Peter toward Sirius, who was also panicking by now.

"No!" Sirius and Peter cried in unison. "Don't leave us here!"

"Moooooony!" Peter wailed, cringing away from the girl, who was watching their reactions with interest.

"Moony, let's go. Let's go get drunk at the Leaky." James grasped Remus' coat, and the wer-wolf was only too happy to be hauled out the door and back out into the air. No, he'd certainly _not _have been able to eat her. Ever. She'd give him heartburn _and_ indigestion.

Outside, James scrambled for the gate and back out on the road, stopped to catch his breath. The task was made difficult by the fact that he was doubled over giggling. Remus panted beside him, not sure whether to laugh or run back.

"Did you see Wormtail's face!" James chortled. "Oh, God, I never knew Peter could scream that high! I didn't know _anyone_ could scream that high!"

Remus gave him a baleful glance and pulled out his emergency stash of chocolate, reminding himself to save some. It was said to be a strong defense against dark magic, and if so, Merlin knew Peter would need a lot by the end of the day. A _lot._


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I do not own or make money from Harry Potter. **

**Chapter 2: **

_1993_

Remus threw open the door, furious, unable to grasp just what had just transpired. He saved the contemplation for later and immediately rounded on Harry. "Now, I haven't the faintest idea how this map came to be in your possession, but frankly, I am _astounded _that you didn't turn it in!" He noticed his voice had come out louder and harsher than it was meant to. "Did it ever occur to you that in the hands of Sirius Black, this map of the school is a map _to you_?"

"No, sir." Harry mumbled, looking at the ground. Still defiant, of course, but not about to contradict him. How exactly like and yet unlike James he was…Remus shut his eyes briefly, suddenly feeling very much like a father. He _was_ a father. But he must not let on to Harry that he was his godson…

"No. You know, your father never set much store by the rules, either. But he and your mother gave their lives to save yours. And gambling their sacrifice by wandering around the castle, unprotected and with a killer on the loose, seems to me to be a pretty poor way to repay them!" Harry winced, and Remus lowered his voice again, trying to regain his calm in the face of concern. "Now. I will not cover for you again, Harry, do you hear me? I want you to return to your dormitory and stay there. And _don't_ take any detours. If you do, I shall know." He held up the map in his hand. It felt so strange to have it fit there like so, just the way it had when he was a boy. He'd never thought he'd see this old rag again.

Harry started for the door, then turned back. "Professor!"

Remus looked up at him.

"Just so you know, I don't think that map always works. Earlier it showed someone in the castle…someone I know to be dead."

_The map never lies._ "Oh, really, and who might that be?" Remus raised his eyebrows skeptically in the darkened classroom.

"Peter Pettigrew."

_No. _

Remus regained his breath. "That's…not possible."

"It's just what I saw." Harry shrugged, obviously not considering it of great importance, before turning to go and disappearing out the door.

Remus gazed after Harry. _The map never lies._ Harry must have been dreaming. Or read it wrong…With a sudden, frantic motion, he flung the map onto the table and spread it out, then tapped it quickly, muttering that stupid password that Sirius had come up with all those years ago.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." The lines began to appear, and his eyes frantically scanned the halls and passages, looking, looking…no Peter.

_Peter._ There. He felt some deep down internal organ lodge in his throat as the name moved along the map, accompanied by footsteps. Heading away from him. But how…He began to formulate his plans. He'd go find out what it was, then tell Dumbledore, then—

"Don't you think that was a little harsh?"

His head jerked up and he stared ahead of him, eyes raking the room.

There was no one, no one there.

He looked down at the map.

_Nymphadora Tonks_, said the spot right in front of him. He looked up again, reaching calmly for his wand. "All right, who's there?" He asked, in the tone used to end a game between distracted students. Except that none of his students had that name, and likely Harry was the only one with an invisibility cloak.

"Bloody…" said the voice again, right next to him this time. "What is this?" The map moved a little away, and he immediately grabbed it and snatched it back before she could steal it away. There was a sudden thump and a bare foot appeared on the floor for a moment and then disappeared again. "Ow. I only wanted a look, Mr. Grabby."

"Now, now, Miss Invisibility." He quickly snapped it shut and held it against his chest. "I think that's enough, time for bed." He listened as she picked herself up the floor again.

There was a pause and some rustling before she (wherever she was) responded, "Are you always such a spoilsport?"

"Excuse—"

"Excused." She interrupted. "But honestly, the kid was only going for a walk. And if it pissed off the Blobbernose, it's well worth it. Nothing wrong with a little midnight jaunt. And honestly, he's just a kid, you could've been nicer—"

"_Excuse me_." He interrupted, stepping back and wondering just where she was. "But I'm afraid you don't have permission to be out of your dormitory."

"I haven't got a dormitory." She replied smugly.

"Then you shouldn't be here in the first place. And I'll kindly thank you to stay out of matters of discipline with my godson." He kicked himself as soon as he said it. "And to tell no one of tonight. Or this. These are private affairs, on which you shouldn't be eavesdropping."

"I'm only standing up for your godson—"

"I can do that on my own, thank you." He responded snappishly.

"Yes, but Dumbledore is paying me to, so…stay out of it. I've got more rights to the kid than you have."

There was a long pause as Remus stared into empty air. "What?"

"I'm his bodyguard. Harry's bodyguard."

_Bodyguard?_

"Yup, me and my partner. We watch him every day, every night. It's so boring, I have to sit through all his classes with him." There was a creak from one of the desks as she presumably sat on it. "But it's okay, you can know, because Dumbledore said you were old Order anyways…and you are the kid's kind-of-godfather, even if you are a wer-wolf…"

_Dumbledore told her all that?_ But of course. With…with Sirius on the loose, someone would have to guard Harry, especially after his first two years at school. And Dumbledore would have briefed them on any possible danger…but oh, God, Remus hoped Snape wasn't that 'other bodyguard' she'd referred to. That'd hurt just too much.

"So." There was a thud and a bang and the desk toppled over. "Oops." The desk was set up again as Remus watched critically. "So, are you going to show me that map or what? The Weasley twins gave it to him, by the way—I mean, who else would? They said they stole it from Filch and stuff."

Remus suddenly remembered the map clutched to his chest and pulled it out to look again.

Peter was now on the third floor, heading toward the staircase. Remus could deal with the invisibly annoying bodyguard later. "Well, if you are Harry's guard, I'd suggest you go see him to his dormitory, as he's almost there now."

"Can't I stay and talk? I'm so bored."

"No." He snapped, moving for the door. "Have a good night, Miss Invisibility."

"Pooper." He heard her mutter before he was out the door and after the elusive name floating toward the fourth floor. This job was turning out to be a _lot_ more complicated than Dumbledore had originally mentioned.

**A/N: Yes, I know Tonks wasn't in the Order and Harry (probably) didn't have a bodyguard in 1993, but that's not explicitly stated, it has zero effect on the overall plot, and I like it this way. **

**And also…I'll go on and admit I have never actually **_**seen**_** any of the Potter films, so if I did horribly on the Lupin/Harry bit (which is film-based), my sincerest apologies. **


End file.
